Tribunal favors assessee in appeal on deduction interpretation under section 80HHC & 115JB

The Tribunal dismissed the Revenue's appeal regarding the interpretation of phasing out provisions for deduction under section 80HHC for computing book profit under section 115JB. The Tribunal found that the issue was settled in favor of the assessee by the Supreme Court's decision in Ajanta Pharma Ltd., emphasizing the self-contained nature of sections 115JA and 115JB. The Tribunal rejected the Revenue's ground, concluding that the issue was no longer open for debate. The appeal outcome favored the assessee, with the Revenue's appeal being dismissed on 23.5.2012.

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Issues involved: Interpretation of phasing out provisions for deduction u/s 80HHC for computing book profit u/s 115JB of the Act.

Summary:
The appeal arose from an order passed by the Tribunal in Misc. Application No. 692/Mum/2010 for A.Y. 2002-03, recalling its order to decide the issue of phasing out provisions for deduction u/s 80HHC for computing book profit u/s 115JB in light of the decision in Ajanta Pharma Ltd. v. CIT. Both parties agreed that the issue was covered in favor of the assessee by the Supreme Court's decision in Ajanta Pharma Ltd., which emphasized the self-contained nature of sections 115JA and 115JB, eligibility of profits under section 80HHC, and the exclusion of "export profits" from book profits under section 115JB.

After considering the submissions and finding no distinguishing features brought by the Revenue, the Tribunal held that the issue raised was no longer res integra and was settled by the Supreme Court's decisions. Accordingly, the ground taken by the Revenue was rejected, leading to the dismissal of the Revenue's appeal.

The order was pronounced in the open court on 23.5.2012.

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